NaBloPoMo

March 05, 2009

I can't remember where I first heard or read about this book, but I picked it up from my (much-adored) library last night. The synopsis and first few pages were interesting and I felt myself agreeing with the author that yes, I do feel spent. I'm often fatigued, with blurry thoughts, and I don't think I get enough sleep. I'm not going to offer a full review of the book now as I just started it, but I decided I might play along a bit with the 6-week regimen Dr. Lipman recommends. I'm not big on extreme diets, but some conscious detoxing could do me good. 1st step: Eliminate sugar. This is what I had for breakfast this morning. Instant oatmeal with the following ingredients: oats, sea salt.

Let me clarify that I had some orthodontic work yesterday so soft mush is about the only thing my teeth can take at the present moment. Tomorrow I'll move on to things that are meant to be sugarless, like eggs. The oatmeal wasn't bad. I don't think Dr. Lipman wants me to go the instant route, but this is what I could cobble together. Remember I just picked up the book last night after all!

I have neglected to mention 'til now that I'm on the NaBloPoMo bandwagon again. Hoping I'm successful this time around. And NaBloPoMo's March theme is "giving up." Bye bye, sugar.

Oh, by the way, the cafeteria at my job had a gorgeous homemade blueberry Oreo cheesecake on the counter today. What's up with that?! Plus, I just obtained a copy of Carole Bloom's upcoming book Bite-size Desserts. Hello! Temptation abounds!

January 01, 2009

"It'll soon shake your windows
And rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin'..."

Ever since I was introduced to Dylan, I felt he sang my tune and sang it true.
A fellow writer recently said that we "have the opportunity to take all
that is human and put it into words for others to relate..." How
beautiful is that, and certainly Dylan is up there with the very best
of them. Inspiration is magical.

As for me, I'm going to put my best pen forward this year along with my
other healthy appendages, for which I'm immeasurably grateful. I
approached this first day of the year with no tastebuds on my tongue
(an on-again, off-again cold has wreaked havoc on my olfactory senses
these past couple of months), but with a healthy appetite for gratitude and
adventure.

What a year we're going to have!

After your spoonful or two of black-eyed peas for good luck, I suggest dipping into a healthy, delicious soup, such as the one that follows below.

We begin with these:Those are 2 halves of a butternut squash, seeds scooped. So interesting how they fit together almost-but-not-quite perfectly. Here they're butting heads.

And here they've been roasted perhaps a few minutes too long. Festering and sweltering, they look awfully grumpy. Flip them over, however, and they yield the most vibrant, vivacious flesh beneath that wrinkly skin.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray baking sheet with nonstick spray,
sprinkle halves of squash with salt and pepper. Place cut side down
on baking sheet. Roast squash until tender, about 1 hour. Scoop
squash into medium bowl and set aside.

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onion and saute until pale golden, about 8 min.

Season to taste with salt & pepper and top servings with sliced avocado.

I hope everyone had a pleasant, peaceful holiday...I'm so looking forward to the new year and all its undeniable changes. My one resolution is to do my best to not let a minute slip by in vain, to no longer jump to the future when I belong in the present. When the clock says 9:54, let's not say it's 10:00 and give up those precious minutes. We never know how many we have left, so let's consciously live each one.

November 10, 2008

I love magazine subscriptions. I love arriving in the front doorway to my apartment building, turning the little metal key in the mailbox slot, and being surprised by the folded magazine that tumbles out into my eager hands.I may have a bit of an addiction to magazine subscriptions -- they're so cheap and make getting the mail exciting! Right now I get TimeOut New York, New York, Bon Appetit, Gourmet, Country Living, Body+Soul, GOOD, and Self.

My favorite is Bon Appetit day...today was a BA day.I walked into my apartment, threw my things down on a chair, hunkered down on the couch with my favorite Post-it tabs, and went to town, as you can see above.This December issue was the best I've read in quite a long time...there are so many recipes I want to make, I wish I could take off the whole month of work just to cook and bake.